Serving a Diverse California

Our Unemployment Insurance Customer Service Center now has dedicated phone lines with EDD staff fluent in California’s eight most-commonly spoken languages. The main unemployment phone number (1-800-300-5616) has been upgraded to include a language selection menu of all eight languages currently offered by the Unemployment Insurance Program. Menu selections and dedicated lines are available for English, Spanish, Armenian, Cantonese, Korean, Mandarin, Tagalog, and Vietnamese as well as free access to interpreter services for more than 100 other languages.

This streamlined enhancement to our automated phone system will allow callers to choose their preferred spoken language with a simple press of a button.

If a customer’s desired language is not one of the languages offered, they can select a new dedicated line, “Other Language,” where agents will get an interpreter at no cost to the customer. This technological advancement will transform how customers interact with our automated systems and improve the customer journey to access our Department’s critical services.

Our website has language resources, including how to access an interpreter, for the most-commonly spoken languages in California. Those resources are pinned to the top of our EDD website with the globe icon for easy location.